Liberty And Honor
by midnightnightfury1
Summary: Sarah's father is working on settling on the Frontier and James has been asked to escort Sarah and her mother to visit him. But trouble is brewing and our two journalist's attract trouble like moths to a flame. Will Sarah and James be able to comes to terms with their feelings and escape the dangers lurking outside the colonies? Read and find out.
1. A Fellow Journalist

Sarah and James strolled down to the docks, as an eager Sarah awaited the arrival of her mother. Her father had recently found a piece of property that he had wanted to show his wife before beginning construction on the house where the couple, along with Sarah could live. "Thank you again for agreeing to escort my mother and I to the frontier to visit father. I can't wait to see both father and my mother again," stated an eager Sarah.

"Really Sarah, it's no trouble at all. I've been asked to cover a story about rogues patrolling the land near some of the already finished settlements, finally an exciting story!" shouted an excited James.

"Just please be careful, what would I do without someone to argue with all day?" giggled Sarah.

"Oh please, you'd go insane and the paper would lack it's charming edge!" laughed James. At that moment the pair approached the ship near the dock as several men began unloading cargo.

"Oh James look, she'll be here any minute! Oh I can't wait to see her again, how I miss our small talk!" Sarah stated, barely being able to conceal her excitement. As the young woman finished her statement, another redhead woman was spotted at the top of the gangplank.

"Sarah, is that her?" whispered James, causing Sarah to turn around and face the ship.

"Oh it is! Mother, mother! Over here!" cried Sarah, drawing the other woman's attention. The woman then walked down the gangplank, every ounce of elegance and grace of a wealthy british lady, visible in each step.

"Sarah, dear please calm yourself, you are causing such a raucous," corrected Mrs. Phillips.

"I'm sorry mother, I'm just so excited to see you, and soon we will be visiting father as well!" giggled the excited girl, bringing a smile to her mother's face.

"It's alright dearest, I too am elated as well. Our family will be reunited for a visit once more. Now, as soon as your servant collects my bags, we can be on our way," stated Mrs. Phillips, her composure back once again.

"Servant? But mother, I don't have a servant, oh..you mean James! He's not a servant, he's a fellow journalist for Doctor Franklin," said an appalled Sarah.

"Great, just great, I'm her servant now!" muttered James, earning a good stomp on his foot from Sarah, causing the boy to yelp.

"Oh, my goodness I hadn't realized. I'm sorry my dear boy," said an embarrassed Mrs. Phillips.

"It's alright ma'am, I was working on the printing press this morning so I'm probably a mess," said James, biting his tongue and faking a smile.


	2. There's A Lot You Don't Know

As the two women enter the print shop, with James stumbling close behind, Mrs. Phillips' luggage in hand, the trio remaining relatively silent the walk over.

"My, my, where is everyone? It looks deserted in here," said Mrs. Phillips, adjusting her shawl,

"With Henri in France and Moses running his school, it's just Doctor Franklin, James and I," replied Sarah, brushing off her mother's comment.

"Where is my dear friend, I'd very much like to see him," said Mrs. Phillips, a slight frown gracing her face.

"Oh, he's down in Boston for a meeting with George Washington but he'll be back in time to see you before you head back to England," smiled Sarah, not faltering despite her mother's questions.

"So it's just you and that young man? Sarah how improper!" gasped Mrs. Phillips, glaring at her daughter.

"It's alright mother, he only left yesterday, right after breakfast. Besides we traveled together during the war, and James is a gentleman when it comes to respecting my boundaries, and with James nearby, no one dares try anything improper," defied Sarah defending her friend, causing James to blush.

"Propriety aside, you expect me to believe that that boy can protect you from anyone? Sarah of all the irresponsible things to do! What would your father think!" screeched Ms. Phillips.

"Father knows, in fact he's the one who suggested that James escort us," defied Sarah.

"Don't worry Mrs. Phillips, I wouldn't let anyone harm Sarah. There's a dagger in my boot and a letter opener in my pocket. Besides, the people in this town know me, and very few people are dumb enough to challenge someone raised on the street to a fistfight. I may not have served during the war, but that doesn't mean I didn't grow up learning how to hold my own in a fight," smirked James crossing his arms.

"Now mother, you must be tired from the long journey. I've prepared a bed for you upstairs and I'll be up shortly with some tea, we'll want to set out early tomorrow so as to be out of the city before the roads get too busy. James, would you mind taking mother's bags upstairs?" said Sarah, trying to stop her mother's questions before she could offend James further than she already has today.

"No problem Sarah, Mrs. Phillips," said James through a strained smile as he picked Mrs. Phillips' luggage and began to haul it up the stairs. Only then does Mrs. Phillips notice James' slight limp and while barely noticeable, that he's also favoring one arm. Once he is out of earshot, Sarah speaks up before her mother can even get the question out.

"You're wondering about his leg, aren't you? It was two weeks ago, and two men tried to break into the print shop, not realizing that anyone was home. I had been changing the linens when they burst in, but thinking it was James or maybe Moses stopping by to visit I walked to the top of the stairs. They spotted me and began arguing about what to since I'd seen their faces, but before they could get any further James had arrived home and was able to sneak up behind the man with the gun and knock him unconscious by hitting him with the part for the press he had gone to pick up. Unfortunately, the other man now knew James was here and tried to reach for the gun. James blocked his way, armed with a knife, but the man was also armed and the two ended up fighting. James was stabbed in the leg and slammed into the wall. The man heard me scream when James hit the floor, and I'll never forget the look in his eyes when he turned to face me, like I was some piece of meat! Luckily it didn't come to that since James was able to grab the gun while the man was distracted. Once he saw that James had the gun he bolted out of the shop. As soon as the man was gone the stern look on Jame's face turned to pain as he dropped to the floor. I couldn't contain my scream, there was just so much blood. Luckily the shopkeeper next door had heard my scream and rushed over. The doctor said James was lucky he got out with only a bruised shoulder and a leg wound, it could easily have been much worse. James is the reason I am standing here today, a lesser man would have run away and left me to fend for myself, rather than try to take down two armed attackers. So while his manners may be less than exceptional, don't question his morals!" snapped Sarah, the sight of her normally collected daughter in such distress startling her mother.

"Wow, that is quite a story. I promise I won't question his morals again, and I'm glad you're both alright," whispered Mrs. Phillips to her daughter as they hugged before she ascended up the stairs. Once she was in the bedroom, with Sarah was out of earshot, she couldn't help but sigh. "It seems that moving the entire family to Ohio may be more difficult than I thought. Sarah seems to have found a new family with Doctor Franklin and her friends here," muttered the woman to herself as she blew out the candle, plunging the room into complete darkness.


	3. The Journey Ahead

"Are you ladies ready to go?" asked James with a strained smile. He'd been eager to head out all morning, but the two women had other ideas when they decided that Sarah needed to repack after breakfast. The coach had just arrived, and the two men were loading up the coach as James helped the driver lift the heavy trunks onto the roof.

"Certainly, as soon as the luggage is secured we're ready to set off," said Mrs. Phillips, adjusting her sweater as a cold breeze brushed by.

"Oh I can't wait to see father!" cried Sarah, her excitement contagious as even James responded with a genuine smile.

"Alright, that's the last of it. Ladies, your carriage awaits," smiled the coachman, helping the two women into the coach, his lingering gaze on Sarah causing James to frown.

"Ehem," couged James to snap the coach driver out of his daze.

"Sir, will you not be joining us?" asked the coachman, confused at James' decision to shut the door.

"I'm their escort, I'll be riding alongside," smirked James as he adjusted his coat and grabbed his horse's reins. He mounted his horse and the animal began to shift uneasily at the sight of the two horses strapped to the coach, but relaxed once his rider was in the saddle.

The horse was a grey stallion named Caesar, who had pretty much become James' personal horse over the years. The print shop owned Caesar, but the animal had pretty much only been used to pull the cart, as the animal was known for being skittish. That is until James began riding him, after that Caesar was skittish toward any other rider, but as soon as James was in the saddle the horse would scarcely flinch, even when skirting the edges of a battlefield, gun and cannonfire sounding all around them.

The Pennsylvania Gazette had finally invested in purchasing a second horse when Sarah had tried to take Caesar to deliver a letter across town and the horse had refused to let Sarah on his back unless James was nearby. However, before they had found a reliable horse for purchase, Washington had gifted them a small snow-white mare, sired by his own stallion, in celebration of Franklin's first successful run of his postal route as a free country. The mare, whom Sarah named Liberty, who was used by Sarah and Doctor Franklin, and unlike her counterpart, only tolerated James. James had helped Sarah tame the wily filly, using Caesar as a guide for Sarah, the two managed to train the now full grown mare into one of the fastest horses in town, second only to Caesar. Doctor Franklin had taken her for his trip, so James only had to worry about making sure the print shop was locked up before leaving. Giving the print shop door one last glance, James turned toward the coach and nodded to the coachman, who snapped his reins, and the coach set off as James nudged Caesar who trotted after it.

As James and his horse bolted past the coach, Sarah watched the incredible interaction between horse and rider, as the once skittish animal became free and fearless, his rider grinning atop his back.

"Quite an interesting pair, aren't they," sniffed Mrs. Phillips, scrunching her nose.

"Whatever do you mean, mother?" asked Sarah, suspicious of what her mother would say next.

"Both of them wild and unrefined, I mean look at them. Earlier, that animal was as skittish as they come and that boy, he doesn't even wear a wig! Both of them untamed and misbehaved, no wonder they get along so well," stated Mrs. Phillips quite bluntly.

"Mother we talked about this, and James has been nothing but nice to you," groaned Sarah.

"I just don't see what you see in him. I mean the boy practically has fleas," sighed her mother, both women watching as James scratched his hair up ahead.

"He does not! He just isn't used to our way of life. They do things differently here in the States, I mean back when it was the colonies, their military hardly had a uniform but it's their determination that matters and I've never met someone more stubborn and determined as James," huffed Sarah, putting her mother in her place, something she'd scarcely done and was unheard of back when she lived in England. "It's hard to get an English education when you're growing up in a war against England," muttered Sarah under her breath as she watched James trot Caesar back and forth, laughing, a grin on his face as the horse clop up and down the path. It was rare to see James so carefree, as her friend always seemed to have a weight on his shoulders.

Back when they'd first met, Sarah had found James to be stubborn, unrefined, and rude, his rough exterior only softening around Henri an occasionally Moses. James looked out for the boy like the role model he'd wished he'd had and protected his adopted family fiercely. More than once had his rash behavior gotten them into trouble, his stubbornness clashing for her own, but as she'd gotten to know him better, she'd learned the real reason behind his closed-off exterior. "You have no idea what James has been through, how he grew up is something you and I could scarcely fathom and I'm sorry but I hurt him once and I don't want anyone else to hurt him in that way," sighed Sarah, gaining her mother's attention.

"You are forgiven, but whatever do you mean?" questioned her mother, resting her hand on Sarah's.

"About a year ago James and I had gone to pick up some supplies when James has stepped into the shop to grab the crate when a bedraggled man approached me. He asked me if I could help him his starving friend to the physician. Foolishly I agreed and followed him to the entrance of an alleyway, only there was no wounded friend, instead, I was greeted with the disgusting smirk of that disgusting man as he tried to seduce me and refused to let me leave. Luckily James had seen what happened and kindly asked the man to leave, his presence causing the man to flee," said Sarah, gauging her mother's horrified expression, careful to leave out the details that James feigned being her fiance and when that didn't deter the man, he brandished a dagger, she wasn't even aware he carried. "James may not be educated on how to behave at formal events, but knowing which fork to use isn't what saved me that day, it was James' streets knowledge that allowed him to notice the con I foolishly fell for, and it was his skills he learned fighting to survive that saved us during that robbery," reminded Sarah as she looked down at her lap.

"I wasn't aware that your friend possessed such abilities, and I must thank him later for saving my daughter. I should be so glad that you have someone looking out for you at the paper, someone you clearly care for," stammered Mrs. Phillips, not quite sure how to handle that new information, throwing in a quip to see her daughter blush.

"I-" but before Sarah could comment on her mother's statement, the crack of a gunshot followed by the cry of a horse could be heard, causing both women to freeze, Mrs. Phillip's hands clinging to her daughter's as Sarah looked out the window worriedly, searching for James. As if he heard her thoughts, Caesar came tearing into the clearing, James upon his back, as they raced up to the carriage. His horse whinnied and panted from the sprint as James held the reins in his hand, the other still clutching his smoking gun.

"Quick, get down," whispered James to the two anxious women.

"James, wat's going on?" asked Sarah and by looking at James' rigid posture, she could tell it wasn't good.

"Bandits," growled James, that one word striking fear into Sarah and her mother's hearts.


End file.
